Cebu floods kill at least 26 as Typhoon Kalmaegi sweeps across central Philippines

Floodwater becomes Cebu's greatest danger

At least 26 people have been killed across the central Philippines after Typhoon Kalmaegi brought torrential rain and destructive flooding, officials said on Tuesday, November 4, 2025. Around Cebu City, weather stations measured about 183 millimeters of rain in 24 hours, more than the area normally receives in an average month.

Nearly 400,000 people moved to safer ground before the storm made landfall, according to the national disaster agency. More than 100,000 sheltered in evacuation centers in Cebu province. Across the island, floodwater swept through entire communities, lifting cars and shipping containers and forcing families onto upper floors and rooftops.

Investigators were still confirming reports from isolated towns. Local authorities in several provinces warned that the death toll could rise as rescue crews reached neighborhoods cut off by water and debris.

Kalmaegi, known locally as Tino, weakened after coming ashore but continued to bring a broad area of rain and strong gusts. By Tuesday afternoon, it was moving west across the Visayas toward Panay, Guimaras and Palawan. Forecasters expected its center to reach the South China Sea by Wednesday.

Cebu provincial governor Pamela Baricuatro said the scale of the flooding had taken many people by surprise. She described water, rather than wind, as the storm's greatest threat to residents.

The situation in Cebu is really unprecedented. We were expecting the winds to be the dangerous part, but the water is what is putting our people at risk. The floodwaters are devastating.

Rivers overflowed and drainage canals backed up as the rain fell. Rescue teams struggled to answer distress calls, while boats and military trucks worked through the night. Streets filled with debris and fast moving water made it difficult to reach people who needed help.

Families climb to rooftops as rescuers struggle to reach them

Liloan, a coastal town in Cebu, saw residents climb onto rooftops as brown water surged through streets. In Mandaue City, people waded through water reaching head level, while vehicles were submerged or carried away.

Volunteers and first responders had to wait for the water to recede in some districts because entering the flood would have put rescue crews in danger. High water and debris blocked routes at the same time that requests for assistance were pouring in.

Gwendolyn Pang, secretary general of the Philippine Red Cross, described why responders could not reach everyone during the first hours of the disaster.

Many calls for rescue could not be answered due to debris and high water levels.

Don del Rosario, a Cebu resident who sought safety on an upper floor as water rose around his building, described the storm as the worst he had experienced in his 28 years in the city.

It is by far the worst we have experienced.

Local governments opened more temporary shelters and brought food, potable water and dry clothing into flooded barangays, or local communities, as access allowed. Medical teams focused on preventing injuries and illness linked to contaminated water, electrical hazards and infection.

Authorities urged residents to follow evacuation orders for areas on low ground and to stay away from flood currents. Local leaders also called on families living in flood plains to leave early when warnings were issued, rather than wait until water surrounded their homes.

Where Kalmaegi is heading and how strong it remains

PAGASA, the Philippine state weather agency, said Kalmaegi carried sustained winds near 130 kilometers per hour, with gusts reaching 180 kph, at points on Tuesday. Earlier in its journey, peak winds were near 95 miles per hour, with higher gusts.

The storm was moving west across the Visayas at about 25 kph. Its large rain shield stretched far from the center, exposing communities along a wide route to heavy rain even as the storm weakened after landfall.

Forecast guidance showed the core heading toward Panay and northern Palawan before moving into the South China Sea. Further heavy rain was expected in parts of Panay, Negros and northern Palawan, as well as other central islands and parts of southern Luzon.

PAGASA warned of flash floods and landslides on slopes already soaked by rain. Coastal communities also faced storm surges that could exceed three meters in some bays and inlets, particularly where winds pushed seawater toward shallow coasts.

A storm surge is a rise of seawater pushed ashore by a storm. It can arrive quickly and flood land well beyond the beach. Dangerous seas were expected to continue around Kalmaegi even as winds eased near its center, while authorities warned that surge and river levels could remain high for several tide cycles.

Authorities in Vietnam were making early preparations for the storm's possible arrival on the central coast later in the week. Forecasters were also monitoring another weather disturbance organizing east of Mindanao, which could bring more rain to the southern Philippines.

Why so much water overwhelmed Cebu

Cebu's flooding followed hours of intense rain from a wide storm whose bands of thunderstorms remained over the same areas. Kalmaegi was not the strongest wind event to strike the Visayas in recent years, but its heavy rain created a different kind of emergency.

The 183 millimeters recorded around Cebu City in a single day pushed rivers beyond their banks and soaked ground that was already wet from recent storms. Once the ground becomes saturated, it has little room to absorb more water, leaving more rain to flow across the surface.

Urban growth has added paved surfaces that do not absorb rainfall. Water falling on roads and other hard surfaces moves quickly toward drains, canals and neighborhoods on low ground. When those channels are blocked by debris, or when high tides slow their flow toward the sea, water backs up into streets and homes.

Several bridges and culverts had reported blockages, adding to the runoff coming from upland barangays. Culverts carry water beneath roads or other structures; a blockage reduces the space available for that water to pass through.

Meteorologists also pointed to a shear line, a narrow boundary where winds from different directions meet. Such a boundary can increase rainfall when a tropical cyclone passes nearby. Kalmaegi and the shear line together helped squeeze moisture out of the atmosphere over the central islands.

Cebu experienced both rainfall flooding and storm surge. Rainfall flooding happens when rainwater cannot drain away quickly enough. Surge occurs when wind and low pressure push the sea inland. In this disaster, the greatest danger came from inland floodwater racing through settlements far from the shoreline.

Air force helicopter crashes during humanitarian mission

The Philippine Air Force reported that a helicopter carrying five personnel crashed in Agusan del Sur in northern Mindanao while on a humanitarian mission. The crash came as emergency teams were expanding flood rescues in Cebu and surrounding provinces.

The Air Force said contact with the crew was lost during a flight to assess damage. Search and rescue teams were sent to the area, but there were no immediate reports on survivors.

In a brief statement, the Air Force described the loss of communication and the response that followed.

Communication with the helicopter was lost, which immediately prompted the launch of a search and rescue operation. Details will be released as they are verified.

Across the flooded communities, rescue work continued to depend on access. Teams needed passable roads or safe routes by water to reach stranded residents, while debris and strong currents restricted movement in some of the places facing the greatest need.

Another evacuation for communities recovering from an earthquake

Kalmaegi struck barely a month after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake in late September killed and injured residents in the central Philippines. Cebu suffered heavy damage, and thousands of people had been living in tents or damaged homes.

Many of those residents had to evacuate again as the typhoon approached. The two disasters placed extra pressure on shelter capacity and made relief distribution more difficult, with communities still dealing with earthquake damage when the flooding began.

Late September also brought Super Typhoon Ragasa, followed shortly by Typhoon Bualoi. Those storms left dozens dead and damaged roads, bridges and crops. Before the typhoons, a wetter than usual monsoon season had already flooded parts of the country.

Residents expressed anger over unfinished or substandard flood control projects that they said had left their communities exposed. The repeated disasters added to pressure on emergency services, transport routes and places used to shelter displaced families.

Disaster managers said the Philippines had already reached its average of about 20 storms and typhoons for the year, with more possible before the end of December. Many rivers remained high and upland slopes were saturated, leaving areas vulnerable to fresh flooding or landslides even with moderate rain.

Flights, ferries, electricity and communications disrupted

Airlines canceled more than 180 domestic flights into and out of affected cities as Kalmaegi crossed the archipelago. Interisland ferries and many fishing boats stayed in port because of the storm.

Maritime authorities said more than 3,500 passengers and cargo drivers were stranded at nearly 100 seaports. The disruption affected the movement of people and goods between islands while emergency teams were trying to deliver supplies.

Power failed in parts of Cebu and nearby provinces. Flooded substations and downed lines left neighborhoods without electricity overnight. Telecommunications were intermittent in several cities on Tuesday, slowing search teams and making it harder for families to contact loved ones.

On Homonhon island in Eastern Samar, strong winds damaged hundreds of homes, many of them small rural houses. No deaths were reported on the island, although rebuilding was expected to take time.

Cebu City officials said the worst floodwater began to recede by midday. Mud, debris and damaged vehicles remained across key roads, creating further obstacles as crews worked to restore access.

The storm's timeline and the next emergency tasks

Kalmaegi's passage followed weeks of damage from an earthquake, typhoons and heavy seasonal rain. The sequence left many communities facing a new evacuation before they had recovered from the previous emergency.

• Late September: A magnitude 6.9 earthquake caused deaths, injuries and heavy damage in Cebu. Super Typhoon Ragasa also struck in late September, followed shortly by Typhoon Bualoi.
• Before Kalmaegi's landfall: Nearly 400,000 people moved to safer ground, according to the national disaster agency.
• Tuesday, November 4: Officials reported at least 26 deaths as severe floods hit Cebu and Kalmaegi moved west across the Visayas.
• Wednesday, November 5: Forecasters expected the storm's center to move into the South China Sea.
• Later in the week: Central Vietnam prepared for a possible landfall.

Emergency crews were searching for residents in Cebu and surrounding provinces while clearing roads so relief could reach affected communities. The government said it had released initial emergency assistance for evacuation centers and local governments, with more supplies on the way as weather allowed.

Authorities told residents in flooded areas to monitor official bulletins, boil water if supplies were contaminated and stay away from downed power lines. They also warned against walking or driving through moving water. Even shallow currents can knock a person off their feet, while opaque floodwater hides hazards beneath its surface.

Forecasters continued to watch the developing system east of Mindanao alongside Kalmaegi's westward track. The immediate response remained focused on rescue, safe shelter and restoring access to communities isolated by the floods.

How warmer seas and La Nina affect storm rainfall

Warmer seas and a warmer atmosphere can give storms more moisture. For every degree Celsius of warming, the air can hold about 7 percent more water. When that moisture condenses in thunderstorms, it can fall as heavier rain.

Tropical cyclones also tend to strengthen more quickly over warmer water. The strength of individual storms varies, while warmer conditions raise the odds of destructive rainfall events like the flooding that struck Cebu.

La Nina, a climate pattern involving cooler water in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, is linked to a more active typhoon season in the western Pacific. During La Nina, steering winds and ocean heat often favor more storms traveling near the Philippines.

Scientists caution that climate change and natural climate patterns can interact in ways that increase the risks faced by communities already exposed to storms. For Cebu, the immediate danger came from the combination of intense rain, overflowing rivers, saturated ground and drainage routes unable to carry the water away fast enough.

What to Know

• Officials reported at least 26 deaths in the central Philippines on November 4, with reports from isolated towns still being checked.
• Nearly 400,000 people evacuated before landfall; more than 100,000 sheltered in centers in Cebu province.
• About 183 millimeters of rain fell around Cebu City in 24 hours, exceeding the area's usual monthly average.
• Floods swept cars and shipping containers through communities and forced residents onto upper floors and rooftops.
• A Philippine Air Force helicopter carrying five personnel crashed in Agusan del Sur during a humanitarian mission. Search operations were launched.
• More than 180 domestic flights were canceled, and over 3,500 passengers and cargo drivers were stranded at nearly 100 seaports.
• PAGASA warned of flash floods, landslides and storm surges that could exceed three meters in vulnerable coastal areas.
• Kalmaegi was heading toward Panay and Palawan, with its center expected in the South China Sea by Wednesday. Central Vietnam was preparing for possible landfall later in the week.
• The storm struck communities still recovering from a magnitude 6.9 earthquake and recent typhoons.
• Warmer seas and climate patterns such as La Nina can increase the risk of intense rainfall and storms near the Philippines.